Return, return, ye captives!
Return unto your home!
The silver trumpet soundeth,
The jubilee has come!
In this chapter failure and poverty are anticipated, but then we have the grace of God that makes provision for it.
“If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his possession, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he redeem that which his brother sold.” Lands and houses could be recovered bore the jubilee, provided the seller had a near kinsman, one who possessed the right of redemption, who could and would redeem the things sold by his brother, or if he himself could find sufficient means with which to redeem what he had sold. vv. 25-27. It was the same with the redemption of a Hebrew who had become the bondman of the stranger. vv. 47-50.
Israel, through their unfaithfulness, waxed poor and sold their possession. The Lord Jesus, the near Kinsman, mightier and wealthier than Boaz (Ruth 2) came, willing and able to redeem. But Israel, with the exception of a small remnant who accepted Him, spurned and rejected Him, and the opportunity of redemption passed. Now they must wait until the year of jubilee, when He shall come back again. Then like Ruth of old, they will cast themselves upon His grace, and will prove what a wonderful and blessed Redeemer He is.
This brings before us afresh the work of love and redemption of the Lord Jesus on our behalf. There never was a son of fallen Adam able to redeem himself; none of us could have ever found sufficient means wherewith to redeem our souls from sin and Satan. No man, no earthly relation could with his riches “redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him"; for the redemption of his soul is too costly (Psa. 49:7,87None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him: 8(For the redemption of their soul is precious, and it ceaseth for ever:) (Psalm 49:7‑8)), and could never have been accomplished by man. But the Lord Jesus, although He was equal with God, became our near Kinsman, and He is the Purchaser, the Redeemer, He “who had the right of redemption.” And the manner in which He exercised His right was by shedding His blood for the ransom of His people. Thus He has perfectly fulfilled the part of our Kinsman.
He could and would redeem us out of the hand of the stranger, and restore to us infinitely beyond all that which sin had robbed Adam, our first father. He has eternally ransomed us, and that before the jubilee. Well might we praise and adore Him!
ML-11/19/1972